Classics: New and Old Some New Zealand Children’s Picture Books

Classics: New and Old     Some New Zealand Children’s Picture Books   

Swim  Chris Szekely, ill. Andrew Burdan, HuiaPublishing, 32 pp, hb, NZ$24.                 [Maori language version: Tahoe, NZ$24]

The Three Little Pigs  Gavin Bishop, Scholastic, 32 pp, pb. NZ$19.50. 

The Silly Goat Gruff  Scott Tulloch, Scholastic, 32 pp, pb, NZ$19.50 

Moose on the Loose  Scott Tulloch, HarperCollins NZ, 32 pp, pb, NZ$19.99

The Three Bears, Sort Of  Yvonne Morrison, ill. Donovan Bixley, Scholastic, 32 pp, pb, NZ$19.50 

The Wheels on the Bus  Donovan Bixley, Hodder Moa/ Hachette, board-book edition, NZ$14.99  

The Song of the Ship Rat  Ben Brown, Helen Taylor, Scholastic, 32 pp, pb, NZ$19.50

Luther and the Cloud-Makers  Kyle Mewburn  ill. Sarah Nelisiwe Anderson, Scholastic, 32pp, pb, NZ$19.50.

Classics: New and Old    Some New Zealand Children's picture books:    

 All good stories are told and retold.  The best become classics, enjoyed by generations of children.  Every New Zealander, for example, has heard of the famous Arawa love story of Hinemoa and Tutanekai.  The latest (and surely the most handsome) re-telling is Swim, retold by Chris Szekely (Chief Librarian of the Alexander Turnbull Library) and illustrated in sumptuous colour by Andrew Burdan. 

Interestingly Szekely uses Hinemoa’s viewpoint, emphasising the sacrifice she was making in leaving her people and the physical effort of her famous swim across Lake Rotorua to Mokoia Island.  “She swam until her arms grew heavy. She swam until her legs became lead.”  Burdan’s atmospheric illustrations add to the spirit of Hinemoa’s feat, as a symbolic kotuku (white heron) becomes her guardian.  This is a beautifully told story splendidly presented.  A Maori language version, Tahoe, is also available, translated by Scotty Morrison, who is a descendant of Tutanekai.  Modern technology meets ancient romance for both versions of this book; each carries a QR code, enabling access to an online MP3 sound-track in both English and Maori.

One of the earliest books by Christchurch’s talented artist and writer Gavin Bishop was his 1989 retelling of The Three Little Pigs. Nearly a quarter of a century later it has been redesigned and re-issued, as charming and amusing as ever. Bishop is faithful to the original tale, complete with straw, sticks and bricks, rolling butter churn and boiling soup pot. His illustrations, however, can only be described as cool-kiwi, with the wolf sporting sharp shades and a monogrammed windbreaker as he tries to outwit the pigs. The ink and watercolour pictures use a Canterbury foot-hills setting, and are rich in amusing details. The brick house has a turnip motif, while the stick dwelling is a historic Canterbury V-hut. Best of all the sharpness and clarity of Bishop’s prose is a perfect match for his illustrations. This is a book to treasure.

 As its title suggests The Silly Goat Gruff offers a variation on the well-known folk-tale.  The troll under the bridge prevents the three goat brothers, Willy, Billy and Silly from trip-trap-tripping across to greener pastures; that much is traditional. Scott Tulloch’s cheerfully bouncy verse version, however, has a surprising twist. Silly goat is not silly; his name proves to be a collection of surprises for the unfortunate troll. Tulloch’s gleefully exaggerated cartoon-like illustrations delight young readers.  (They will also enjoy Tulloch’s latest addition to his Willy series, Moose on the Loose, where Willy makes mayhem with pets real and imaginary.)    

The Three Bears, Sort Of is Yvonne Morrison’s highly imaginative retelling which older readers will relish. On one level a luckless narrator is trying to tell the familiar story. ‘Once upon a time there were three bears…’ His audience, however, has a well-stocked and enquiring mind. ‘What kind of bears? Grizzly bears? Sun Bears? Polar bears?’ The narrator then has to cope with a barrage of inconvenient facts. ‘Why is she cooking it? Wouldn’t bears just eat the oats raw? Or, better yet, go out to catch some salmon?’  The narrator extemporises brilliantly, suggesting that Baby bear is allergic to fish, and that the three bowls are different sizes so the porridge cools at different rates. Despite the inconvenient fact that bears can run at up to 50 kilometres an hour, a happy (and amusing) conclusion is reached. Donovan Bixley’s colour illustrations add a whole layer of fun to proceedings. The artist’s hands can be seen rapidly adjusting each illustration to match unexpected U-turns in the story. Sometimes hastily-clipped magazine pictures are superimposed on the paintings; there’s even a small hand adding crayoned corrections. Any child (or older reader) who has ever had doubts about Goldilocks will find constant pleasure in this book. (The talented Donovan Bixley’s Kiwi version of The Wheels on the Bus has just been released as a board book, which will give young readers something to get their teeth into.)

The Song of the Ship Rat matches Ben Brown’s bouncy verse with Helen Taylor’s exquisite artwork to bring to life a ship rat who is full of rich memories but weary of the sea. Yet the ship rat finds that the port which once welcomed him – it might be Lyttelton - is not as he remembered it. The result is a poignant classic of the future.

‘Unroll the maps to Far Away!

We’ll sail before the sun,

For I am a sea-worn ship rat, friends…

 

And I’ll sail until I’m done.’

Another classic of the future is Luther and the Cloud-Makers, skilfully told by Kyle Mewburn and dramatically illustrated by Sarah Nelisiwe Anderson. In this ‘eco-fable,’ life in Luther’s idyllic rural settlement is threatened by black clouds of pollution. ‘They were thick and black as tar.’  Young Luther bravely goes out to seek the cloud-maker. He finds lots of them – machines, tyre-fires and factories – but the people operating them all respond to Luther’s request to stop the black clouds with the assurance that, ‘There’s plenty of room in the sky for a little smoke.’  The genius of this story and its illustrations is that although Luther feels he has failed, the reader can see more than he can. Behind Luther people are talking of filters and re-cycling. He plods home depressed but a surprise is in store for him and the world he lives in. Young readers will enjoy this splendidly-presented allegory.

 Trevor Agnew, Christchurch, New Zealand

Note: This review first appeared in Your Weekend magazine, The Press, Christchurch on 7 September 2013

 

Full Publishing Details:

Swim  Chris Szekely, ill. Andrew Burdan, Huia Publishing, 32pp, hb, $24.00  ISBN 978-1-77550-079-7   [Maori language version: Tahoe]

The Three Little Pigs  Gavin Bishop, Scholastic NZ, 32 pp, Pb. NZ$19.50.  ISBN 978-1-77543-156-5

The Silly Goat Gruff  Scott Tulloch, Scholastic NZ, 32 pages, paperback $19.50  ISBN 1-77543-105-3

Moose on the Loose  Scott Tulloch, HarperCollins NZ, 32 pages, pb, $19.99 ISBN 978-1-86950-683-4

The Three Bears Sort Of  Yvonne Morrison, ill. Donovan Bixley, Scholastic NZ, 32 pages, paperback $19.50  ISBN 1-77543-068-1

The Wheels on the Bus  Donovan Bixley, Hodder Moa/ Hachette, board-book edition, $14.99   ISBN 978-1-86971-299-0  [Hachette, 4 Whetu Pl, Mairangi Bay, Auckland]

The Song of the Ship Rat  Ben Brown, Helen Taylor, Scholastic NZ, 32 pages, paperback, $19.50 ISBN 978-1-77543-048-3

Luther and the Cloud-Makers  Kyle Mewburn  ill. Sarah Nelisiwe Anderson, Scholastic, 32pp, pb $19.50.  ISBN 978-1-77543-144-2

 

Best Books of 2011 for Younger Readers

The Margaret Mahy Treasury, Puffin/Penguin, 256 pp, hb, NZ$45

The Call of the Kokako, Maria Gill, Heather Arnold, New Holland, 36pp, hb, NZ$29.99

501 Great Kiwi Jokes ill. Donovan Bixley, Scholastic, 112 pages, pb NZ$10

Old MacDonald’s Farm ill. Donovan Bixley, Hodder Moa [Hachett], 24 pp, pb, NZ$19.99

There’s a Hole in my Bucket ill. Jenny Cooper, Scholastic, 32pp, pb, [includes Topp Twins CD] NZ$26

Mind Your Gramma! Yvonne Morrison, ill. Nikki Slade Robinson, Scholastic, 24pp, hb, NZ$21

Rahui Chris Szekely, ill Malcolm Ross, Huia, 36pp, hb, $20

Battle of the Birds, Lee Murray, Taramea Publishing, Coromandel, 155 pages, pb, NZ$19.99



The Best New Zealand children’s books of 2011

It may be heresy but even though I have been a judge of the NZ Post Children’s Book Awards, I don’t believe there is such a thing as a best book. Every reader is different and their judgement of what is best won’t agree with mine. The seven books I have selected certainly all meet high standards of writing, illustration and design. I think they are all marvellous books but the proof of ‘best’ remains in the reading.

Take The Margaret Mahy Treasury, for example. With eleven stories, and seven artists, it would take a brave reviewer to pick the best. A Lion in the Meadow came first, which makes it special and The Witch in the Cherry Tree fires the imagination. I love Jam because Margaret drew a crocodile in my daughter’s copy, while everyone who has ever worked in a library adores The Librarian and the Robbers. The Boy Who Was Followed Home has that perfect ending, and who can resist the rhythm and rumpus of A Summery Saturday Morning?
‘Bad dogs, bad dogs chase the cat,
Chase the cat, chase the cat.
One dog’s thin and the other dog’s fat
On a summery Saturday morning.’

The Call of the Kokako is not only 2011’s most beautiful non-fiction book for young people, it is also the most informative. Writer Maria Gill and artist Heather Arnold, who produced the award-winning Rangitoto (2009), have developed a unique style of combining appealing artwork and imaginative text. Their fresh approach has been classily supported by their publishers with a high quality hard-covered book, which captures every aspect of the Kokako. This endangered bird, with its striking blue wattles, “clinging to existence with just one claw,” is superbly presented in eye-catching colour portraits, along with its forest habitat, natural enemies, maps, Maori legend, and a ripping (true) yarn about how conservationist Geordie Murman saved ten kokako from the loggers.

Let’s be honest. The jokes in 501 Great Kiwi Jokes are not great. Instead they’re those awful gags and puns that kids adore. (‘Which months have 28 days? All of them.’) You buy this one because it helps a good cause – Cure Kids – and endure the jokes as your youngster tries them all out. Take time, however, to look at Donovan Bixley’s (donated) illustrations which are brilliant.

Donovan Bixley’s work is seen at its best in his picture book Old MacDonald’s Farm, where he has used the traditional song as a framework for a display of Kiwi culture. In one exciting day on the farm, every familiar Kiwi object from a turkey in gumboots to Buzzy Bee appears. The double page colour spreads are striking (and witty) but so is the careful detailing which allows the reader to follow each animal’s preparations for the Show, from pig’s mud-pack to the dog’s baking. (ANZAC biscuits of course.) If you look very carefully at MacDonald’s sheep trailer, you’ll see ‘DB rules’ carved on the side planks. Donovan Bixley rules indeed.

Jenny Cooper is a talented and under-appreciated illustrator, who has been creating crazy animals for years. Her pictorial version of There’s a Hole in My Bucket has an irascible duck and a passive-aggressive billygoat engaged in a never-ending duel of wits. The accompanying CD features the Topp twins, and the combination is hilarious.

A picture book that adults laugh at? A picture book about grammar? A funny book about grammar? Yvonne Martin has pulled off the hat-trick with Mind Your Gramma!, an amusing book which will make grandparents laugh as much as the grandchildren they’re reading it to. Yvonne Morrison has created some delightful moments of mutual misunderstanding between the generations, as Gramma tries to correct her granddaughter’s grammar.
‘Gramma asks me about my day, and I say, “Me and my friend played soccer.” She says, “My friend and I played soccer.” I say, “At your age?” Gramma sighs…’
Nikki Slade Robinson’s illustrations capture the warm relationship between the pair and help make this the year’s best example of good book design.

“Sometimes in the holidays, we go and stay with our relations. They live in the country. I love it there.” Chris Szekely’s Rahui begins with a richly evocative description of long summer holidays in a small coastal Maori community. “But best of all we go to the beach! I love it at the beach.” Malcolm Ross’s magnificent paintings show children playing on the sand, fishing, swimming and boating. Then the story’s mood changes. Tragedy strikes the community when a cousin, Thomas, drowns. We see the surviving children at the tangi. “A rahui was put on the beach. We couldn’t play there any more. Or fish. Or eat kina. Or swim.” When a year has passed, Thomas’s headstone is unveiled. “The rahui was over. But our love remains.” The combination of the child’s simple voice and Ross’s richly evocative paintings produce a moving acceptance of life’s joys and sadness.

Some of the most important fiction works in the world are the ‘bridge-books’, the junior novels that introduce young readers to the joys of longer fiction. Without young novels like Battle of the Birds, the future of reading is grim. Lee Murray has taken a strikingly fresh approach to an over-familiar topic. Her jaunty heroine, Annie, carried back in time by a giant eagle, finds herself in an ancient Maori society where she can speak to and understand both the birds and the people. The conflict among the birds, stirred up by the evil Haast eagle, Te Hokioi, and his fellow birds of prey, threatens the very survival of humans in Aotearoa. Annie, whose arrival has been foretold in tribal legend, now has to battle to unite the rest of the birds to resist Te Hokioi.

The appeal of this story is that nobody speaks in the high language of traditional fantasy. The birds, in particular are cheerfully conversational, “Why not join me for lunch? I’ve got some huhu grubs in.” Annie and her young Maori friends show great initiative, even inventing balloon flight, as they try to save the gentle moa and the other birds. Books as lively and exciting as Battle of the Birds reward young readers with a lifelong passion for books. And that is certainly the function of the best books.


Trevor Agnew Dec 2011



FULL PUBLISHING DETAILS:The Margaret Mahy Treasury, Puffin/Penguin, 256 pp, hb, NZ$45
ISBN 978-0-14330627-6
501 Great Kiwi Jokes ill. Donovan Bixley, Scholastic, 112 pages, pb NZ$10
ISBN 978-1-77543-035-3

Old MacDonald’s Farm ill. Donovan Bixley, Hodder Moa [Hachette NZ], 24 pp, pb, NZ$19.99
ISBN 978-1-86971-230-3

There’s a Hole in my Bucket ill. Jenny Cooper, Scholastic, 32pp, pb, NZ$26 [includes Topp Twins CD]
ISBN 978-1-77543-046-9

Mind Your Gramma! Yvonne Morrison, Nikki Slade Robinson, Scholastic, 24p, hb, NZ$21
ISBN 978-1-77543-041-4

Rahui Chris Szekely, ill Malcolm Ross, Huia, 36pp, hb, $20 ISBN 978-1-86969-470-8
[Maori language ed. ISBN 978-1-86969-471-5]

Battle of the Birds, Lee Murray, Taramea Publishing, Coromandel, 155 pages, pb, NZ$19.99
ISBN 978 0 473 18928 0